Ripple Secures Final U.S. Approval, Clearing Key Hurdle in National Bank Charter Process
Ripple has cleared a major milestone in its effort to establish a national trust bank in the United States. Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse announced that the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has granted final approval for Ripple National Trust Bank. The new bank is designed to manage reserves for the company’s RLUSD stablecoin and provide digital asset custody services to institutional clients.
The development, announced on October 27, aims to deepen Ripple’s integration with the U.S. banking system. However, despite the final approval, no launch date for the bank’s operations has been disclosed.
Ripple Secures Final Approval for National Trust Bank
Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse shared the OCC’s decision via his X account. Garlinghouse characterized the move as a pivotal turning point ahead of Ripple’s Swell conference.
Garlinghouse emphasized that the transformation underway in the crypto sector is happening not outside the traditional financial system, but from within it.
It was particularly emphasized that the new bank would operate under federal supervision. Ripple’s Chief Legal Officer Stuart Alderoty, meanwhile, recalled that the company chose years ago to comply with existing rules rather than operate outside the regulatory framework.
One of the new bank’s core tasks will be to manage the reserves of Ripple’s U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoin, RLUSD.
Jack McDonald, one of the executives responsible for Ripple’s stablecoin activities, confirmed that the bank will also serve as collateral manager on behalf of RLUSD holders. It will also provide regulated digital asset custody services to institutional clients.
Ripple Received Initial Approval in December 2025
Ripple had received initial conditional approval from the OCC in December 2025 to establish a national trust bank.
During the same period, while Circle obtained approval in a similar manner, companies such as BitGo, Fidelity, and Paxos took steps to move their existing trust institutions under federal oversight.
OCC Acting Comptroller Jonathan Gould stated at the time that applications underwent comprehensive reviews and that companies needed to meet additional conditions before commencing full operations.
Ripple’s final approval represents a continuation of this process. However, national trust bank status does not mean the company can offer the full range of services provided by traditional commercial banks.
RLUSD’s Use in Banking System Expands
In early October, Ripple signed a significant partnership with New Jersey-based Cross River Bank.
Under the agreement, RLUSD is planned to be integrated into the bank’s Core Operating System infrastructure.
This will allow businesses using the platform to transfer funds between the US dollar and RLUSD via a single API connection.
The system will also support ACH and wire transfer transactions. Transactions conducted on the XRP Ledger are targeting a settlement time of approximately 3-5 seconds. The service is reported to be available initially only in certain states.
The final approval Ripple received from the OCC could strengthen RLUSD’s position in regulated financial infrastructure. However, the development has not led to a notable change in the price of XRP for now.
According to TradingView data, XRP, which lost 0.43% in value in the last 24 hours, is trading at the $1.29 level.
The bank’s field of activity focuses primarily on RLUSD reserve management and digital asset custody services.
